


Where She Went

by thegirlwholivedtowrite



Series: A Selection of Short Stories [1]
Category: Original Work
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-16
Updated: 2016-10-16
Packaged: 2018-08-22 19:20:15
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,390
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8297288
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/thegirlwholivedtowrite/pseuds/thegirlwholivedtowrite
Summary: Lucie is gone, she isn't coming back, and we never said goodbye.





	

It was a small house on the end of a dirt road. The steps on the porch had nearly fallen apart and one of the windows was shattered. Negligence made the yard into a jungle with overgrown grass that reached up to our hips. Vines raced up and down the front of the house, making its original color unrecognizable. The door hung by a hinge, creaking with cool gusts of wind. Through the window you could see tattered lace curtains that were probably once white, but now a light brown tint.    
 Long ago the house might have been quite beautiful. It was easy to picture kids playing on the freshly cut lawn as the mom watches from the window. Or an elderly couple watching the day pass in wooden rocking chairs. The husband reading the newspaper, while the wife knits her grandson a sweater. The possibilities of lives that once lived in this house were endless. But now, the house is just a beautiful daydream, a distant memory of ‘what if’s and ‘what could’s.   
 I look down at the map in Sloane’s hands, the line of pen leading exactly to this house.    
 “This is it?” She mutters under her breath, annoyance hints in her tone. “We drove for three long fucking hours in your stupid smelly car-” I shot her a hurt look. “-and this is where she brought us. This...this shack.”    
 I shrug, not sure of how to respond. In a way, I kind of agreed with her, that is was pointless to drive here for nothing. But, Lucie brought us here, so there has to be a reason for it.     
 Sloane scoffs, “Typical, typical Lucie.” She runs a hand through her dark hair. “Put this in the bag.” She hands me the map and starts pulling her hair up into a ponytail. I quickly fold the map messily and shove it into my backpack.    
 “So,” I turn towards Sloane, “do we go in?”    
 She smirks and quirks up an eyebrow.    
 “Of course we do. Elliot, we have a perfectly good abandoned house sitting in front of us. Obviously, we go in. Plus, Lucie brought us here for a reason, what if she left something inside? A clue or a note? Or just...something.” Her voice was confident but her golden eyes held tears of uncertainty.   
 No matter how hard Sloane tries to act like she isn’t breaking on the inside, I can tell how upset she is. She puts up glass walls to protect herself from the world around her. She can always look out and pretend that the world can never look in, but little does she know her wall is cracked. I can tell it is close to shattering down and I know I have to be here for her when it does. Lucie may be gone, but Sloane is still here. She is still here and she still loves Lucie. But Lucie is gone and she’s never coming back. Death is the worst heartbreak a human can ever experience. There are no second chances with death.    
 I run a hand through my my short tawny curls and take a deep breath. My eyes meet Sloane’s, I give a nod and we walk up to the house in silence, not knowing what to expect. Sloane easily walks up the porch steps and starts exploring the porch. I, unlike Sloane, get my foot caught in a part of the broken step and stumble forward. Luckily, I catch myself with my hands before I land flat on my face.    
 Sloane must’ve heard my fall because her head jerks around and peers at me.   
 “Nice job, you are actually the clumsiest person I’ve ever met.” I fake a laugh and pull myself up, brushing the dirt off from my feet.    
 Now that I was closer to the house I couldn’t help but notice the musty smell of dust and rotting wood. A gust of wind dances by making the door creak loudly. I walk over to it and gently push it open.    
 The door opens into what I believe to be the living room. The walls are painted a faded yellow and the only furniture is a small sofa covered by a white sheet. An old TV sits in the corner of the room, it’s the really big bulky type, something my mother probably used to watch TV on when she was younger. I walk over to it and brush my fingers on it. The dust turns the tips of my fingers a dark gray. I wipe it off on the bottom of my sweater, a glum feeling settles in the bottom of my stomach.   
 If Sloane entered the room I didn't hear it, which is probably why I jump when she sneezes behind me.    
 "Jesus Christ." I mutter, trying to catch my breath.    
 "No just me, though I have heard we have a similar resemblance." Sloane says, highly amused by my reaction. "So did you find anything?"    
 I bit down on my lip and shake my head no. I'm close to giving up and going home, but I don't want Sloane to know that. She sighs and turns around to explore what's left of the house, I follow not knowing what else to do.    
 The hallway is tight and dusty. I only figure this out because my shoulder brushes the walls and my once dark green sweater now a light shade of grade. I make a face of disgust and brushing it off with my hand. I keep following Sloane until she reaches the end of the hallway. She stops in front of a door, I can tell she's contemplating on going in or not.   
 Behind the door could be many things. It could be a note or box or something explaining why Lucie did what she did. Or it could be Lucie, sitting there in her ripped overalls, yellow stripped shirt and tattered converse. Her hair that resembled mine, tawny and curly, could be back in two French braids she wore almost everyday. A bright smile on her face as she laughed and shouted, "Gotcha!" Or there could be nothing at all. All of this being just some wild goose chase for nothing.    
 Sloane straightens her spine and takes a deep breath. She has made up her mind and was now putting up her glass wall before walking into the war. I reach out and give her shoulder a reassuring squeeze. She looks back and nods. Her hand reaches out and grabs the doorknob. The door creaks open and we step inside.    
 It's utterly bare.    
 No furniture or unique wallpaper. No box or note or anything to show Lucie had ever even been here. For all we know she never was. Maybe this was just another place she was longing to visit but never had the chance to before she decided enough was enough. Maybe she had been here but so long ago that it didn't even show a sign. Maybe she didn't leave that map for us to find. Maybe she didn't leave anything at all.    
 But she did leave something. She left Sloane, the one who loved her more than anything in the whole entire world. And she left me, her twin brother, her rock, the one she went to when our dad was drunk or just needed a hug. She left us and she wasn't coming back. There was no reason and you can't ask the dead questions.   
 Sloane broke down in the middle of the room. She sinks to her knees crying, her wall has finally shattered. Her hair has started to come out of her ponytail and her sobs are the only thing that can be heard. I walk over to her and kneel down to her level, wrapping her in my arms. Her tears soak my shirt but I don't mind. She cries and cries and cries until finally she stops. Her face is painted with mascara and her eyes are puffed red. She looks up at me with her red and gold eyes. Her voice is raspy from crying, but she doesn't have much to say.   
 "Where is Lucie?" She says and I don't answer. I just hold her tighter and rub small circles on her back.   
 Lucie is gone, she isn't coming back, and we never said goodbye.   
  


**Author's Note:**

> Thanks so much for reading!! Im gonna try and update my work a lot more. Lately I've just been doing little short stories like this...I've been thinking about doing some Scorbus or Wolfstar cause I'm trash. Anywhoooo have a lovely day!


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